Know someone who is new to Vermont? Willing to host a new person you don’t know yet? Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation (BDCC) invites you to invite them to dinner during the month of March.
“March can be especially tough for someone who has just experienced their first Vermont winter, and hasn’t made a lot of community connections yet,” says Rachel Shields Ebersole, program manager for BDCC’s GROW SoVermont, part of BDCC’s Welcoming Communities programming to foster thriving communities and a robust regional workforce. “Helping folks with a little extra welcome during cabin-fever season can really make a difference.”
Throughout the year, GROW SoVermont holds newcomers mixers, shares resources and personalized recommendations with people who have recently relocated to Windham County from outside Vermont, and matches new residents with local welcome wagon hosts who will connect with them for a hike or coffee meetup.
“We’ve made most of our friends so far through the GROW SoVermont program,” says Alyssa Hunt, executive director of the Brattleboro Boys and Girls Club, who relocated to Bellows Falls from New Jersey in early 2024 with her partner, extended family, and two small children. “My work connects me to a lot of organizations in the community, but it’s been so helpful to have a jumpstart on those personal connections through the events and introductions Rachel has facilitated.”
Interested in “Invite a New Vermonter to Dinner Month,” or other GROW SoVermont initiatives? Learn more and sign up to participate at sovermont.com/marchmeals.
About GROW SoVermont
GROW SoVermont is a regional partner in the statewide GROW initiative created to welcome newcomers to the region—from recent relocators to returning residents and those planning a move to Vermont. The GROW network is a program of Think Vermont and is funded in part by Vermont’s Agency of Commerce and Community Development. For more information, please visit sovermont.com/grow.
About BDCC
Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation (BDCC) is a private, nonprofit economic development organization with the mission of investing in the drivers of the regional economy so that people, businesses, and communities in Southern Vermont can thrive. In addition to its private nonprofit leadership role in regional business acceleration and expansion programs and projects, economic, workforce and community development programming, BDCC also serves as the State of Vermont’s certified Regional Development Corporation (RDC) for the greater Windham County area (including Windham County and the towns of Readsboro, Searsburg, Winhall and Weston). BDCC is one of 12 RDCs throughout Vermont. BDCC’s activity is made possible in part by a grant from the State of Vermont through the Agency of Commerce and Community Development. For more information, visit https://brattleborodevelopment.com/
